Chocolate Espresso Fudge Cake

So here's the deal.  I don't post a lot because I'm waiting to make something worth posting or getting the right picture of it to post.  I'm done with all that.  The great food bloggers of today did not start out perfect.  This is a total learning process.  Practice.  Failure.  Success.  It really doesn't matter.

I look at the blogs that I love and they have three things in common.  Great food/recipes, great pictures, and personality!  Speaking of personality this recipe comes from Jen at Use Real Butter.  Yes, she posts STUNNING pictures and amazing food but she is also super witty and is a great read.  

The moral of my disjointed story?  Blog readers come to a blog to see a great recipes and pictures and stay for the person.  So here I am world!  I'm a 22 year old working a 9-5 in Florida.  I love to dance and bake.  If I go a week without baking something I get a little crazy...just ask my family!

So without hesitation I present to you the Chocolate Espresso Fudge Cake...

This cake came together very nicely.  Of course, as usual, I started it after dinner and was putting on the final touches after midnight.  

I think my favorite part of this cake (besides the icing pattern on top!) was the textural difference between the buttercream and the ganache.  The middle layer was iced with the ganache.  It just had a thick, decadent taste and feel to it.  I used 60% dark chocolate for the ganache.  It was a good choice.  It kept it rich without being overwhelmingly sweet.  

The dots on the top were just fun to eat as the smooth and creamy buttercream combined with the think, rich ganache.

A piped ring of buttercream was a must to keep the ganache from escaping.

Crumb coat!

I used my cake leveler to make a grid for piping the top.  

My grid wasn't perfect but it was close enough.  

I was so happy with this cake.  It is one of the prettiest things I've ever made (in my opinion) and it tasted of pure happy.  If you ever try it you won't be disappointed!

Ghost Poo

Well, my first attempt at making a carved caked was a total fail!  Ha ha.  I wanted to make it tapered like a topsy turvy cake.  Well, that sorta worked.  I filled it with a Kahlua mousse and topped it with buttercream.  So far, so good (not great, but good)

Then came the modeling chocolate.  Sounds simple... 10oz chocolate chips melted, 1/3cup corn syrup.  Mix, chill.  Mold.

This stuff turned to goo as soon as I touched it.  Then it hardened as soon as it hit the cake or I put it down.  My original plan for the cake was to have "fondant-type" circles and maybe fondant lollipops or a spider or two.  Simple.  Cute.

When the modeling chocolate failed I decided to go with it.  (Since it was already after midnight and I had work in the morning)  It would have taken less time to just make some marshmallow fondant and do it right.  So, I used the drippy chocolate to "drip" down the side of my cake.  Why?  I don't know.  It was late.  Then I decided I didn't like how the top of the cake looked so I ripped off some of the slime puddles (and cake and icing that had adhered to it)  Now I was left with a big hole.  Hmmmm, I thought, I should make a stand up ghost.

Word to the wise...NEVER MAKE A CHOCOLATE GHOST!!!!  

Now my cake has a giant turd with eyes and a creepy smile.  Great.  Oh well.  It's 1:30 am by now.  I go to put it in the outside fridge...It doesn't fit.  Solution?  Smash the turd down about an inch.  Now I have a smashed turd with smooshed eyes and a creepy smile.

This morning I open the fridge to find the cake has cracked around the turd in two places.  Oh well, I will either make a bit of marshmallow fondant tonight before the party to make a proper white ghost, or I will serve the turd cake in all its glory.

Please, enjoy.  And laugh.  I am!